Losing Hope
by sorceresstar
Summary: When something happens to Hope in the sewers she is found by a human couple. Will the turtles and Master Splinter be able to retrieve their missing female family member? part of my Hope series... if you want to find out who Hope is read Rays of Hope
1. Chapter 1 disaster strikes

**Losing Hope chapter 1 disaster strikes**

well... I had my final exams so no more school for me... I'll y stories a lot more now... all my stories so stay tuned

* * *

A small figure made strange movements; it seemed to be holding a long stick. It was a young girl, maybe six or seven years old and she flexed her body in ways that were unnaturally controlled for her age. Small hands twirled the bamboo stick she was holding before creating a soft whooshing sound and a thud as she strikes. This was immediately followed by a cry of shock. She broke from her concentration as her gaze lingered on the grinning turtle boy at her feet.

'_Mikey! How many times I have to tell you, no sneaky up on me!'_

'_Lots and lots of times Hope.'_

'_Aw man!'_

She didn't miss the mischievous glint in her brother's eyes and she quickly pinned him to the floor.

'_Tell Mikey before I make turtle soup out__ of you!'_

He gasped; _'you wouldn't'_

'_Bet on it… dude.'_

'_Alright, alright I'll give. We're gonna go play in the play in the sewers, wanna come?'_

'_But master Splinter said….'_

'_Master Splinter won't know.'_

'_Alright.'_

Hope helped him up and together they walked out and joined their brothers. Soon, the five children reached the main junction of the sewers. Hope looked at her brothers… they weren't allowed to play here! It was too dangerous! Her confusion grew as she saw her brothers walk towards a small ledge and using it to reach the other side of the junction. They noticed that she hadn't followed them and they turned to her.

'_Come one Hope! Wactcha waiting for?'_

'_Where are you going?'_

'_We're going to an old place deeper into the sewers Raph and me found.!'_

'_But Leo! If master Splinter finds out we're done for!'_

'_It's safe Hope, trust me! Now come on!'_

The little girl sighed and walked towards the edge. She began to pull herself to the other side of the room. Hope made it half way across when she felt her fingers slip and she struggled to hold onto the ledge. Her brothers looked at her with worry and urged her to go on. She found her grip and she restarted her climb across but before she could move even 1 inch, a part of the ledge broke of and tumbled into the water. And what was worse… it took Hope with it! The little girl screamed as she fell to the water. Her eyes, wide open in fear, found those of her brothers. They were shocked and they stood there watching all the while not knowing what to do. Mikey screamed and made a gesture as if he wanted to catch her hand.

'_HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOPE'_

But is was too late for the moment her name left his beak, her body collided with the surface.

/Hope's point of view\

The water was freezing cold as I fell in it. I heard Mikey shout my name but I couldn't answer. The surface closed over my head and I was trapped inside the cold darkness of the water. I flailed with my arms and legs… hoping to get up to catch some air. I felt my heart in my throat when I lost my breath…. Suddenly I felt rocks beneath my feet. I had hit the bottom! Without thinking I kicked myself up; I broke through the surface with a start and began coughing. The current was to strong for me to stay up and I got dragged back down under. No matter how hard I struggled I couldn't go back up. Suddenly stars came into my sight as my head connected with something hard. The hit made me lose my breath and I began to suffocate. I couldn't get back up and I gave up hope. Slowly my vision turned black and I got lost in the darkness while I drowned…

* * *

_Is this the end of little Hope? Who knows…. Stay tuned for the next part of Losing Hope!_


	2. Chapter 2 where am I?

**_Argh... I know I promised to update more frequently but I simply couldn't find the time sobs so to make it up to you three chapters with little Hope's adventures will be uploaded... one in this story and two at Rays of Hope (in the following 4 days I promise) anywayz I'll also try to overcome my writersblock and update my other stories T.T for now enjoy_**Losing Hope Chapter 1 Where am I?

* * *

A young couple had been taking a walk. Today was the fifth anniversary of their marriage. It was a happy anniversary but a shadow of grief laid over the couple. They had been trying for a child and for the forth year they came up empty handed. Today was also the fifth anniversary of their unborn childs death. Mrs. McAllister had been pregnant with their first child the day they got married but tragidy struck them on their wedding day. It was their first night as a married couple but what supposed to be a romantic, loving night soon turned into a nightmare. Mrs. McAllister, Jade, had miscarried and they had lost their unborn child.

So now this couple, filled with both love and grief stroled by a river outside New York as they lived at the outskirts of the city. Soon though stench filled their nose as their were nearing a sewer entrance. Part of the water of the sewer would flow into the river as the remaining gallows of water flowed into a tank.

They decided to follow the stream a little bit more dispite the smell and they neared the sewer entrance. It was Mr. McAllister that made a schokking discovery. From the corner of his eye he spotted something white and as he turned he could make out a small body. He cried out to his wife to call 911 and slid down to the rivershore. The body, he saw, belonged to a young girl, no more then 6 or 7 years old, with shoulder length dirty white hair. Her eyes were closed but when he checked he found that her heart was faintly beating and her breathing was shallow. But the most important part was that she was still alive. She was dripping wet and her clothes were torn though it was impossible to tell it those rips were new or if they had been there allready. Slowely he drew her into his arms and he carried her up to his wife. Jade sucked in her breath as she saw what he was holding and she prayed that the paramedics would arive soon.

Sure enough the unmistakeble sound of sirens reached their ears and soon the child was taken to the nearest hospital. Mr. And Mrs. McAllister had requested to ride with the ambulance so that they could be with the child for a little bit longer.

The moment they reached the hospital the girl was taken away for examination and the couple waited to hear what news they had for them.

Policeman came and went asking the couple questions about the girl. But they had no answers. Judging from her clothes she came from a poor family and she had nothing to ID her with on her. For now the girl remained a Jane Doe.

--

Meanwhile four young boys searched the sewer tunnels for their missing sister. They didn´t dare to return home, afraid of what their father would say. The echos of their calls were unanswered and died out inside the endless tunnles beneath the great city.

--

It had been three hours since the girl had been brought in. Her current condition was stable but still uncounscious. With the beating her body had taken that was no surprise but what was surprising was that the little girl should've been dead. Test results told them that she had been underwater for a long period of time. A trained swimmer could barrely last that long under water and there was no way that such a young child should be able to…. Still there was the possbility of a hypothermic shock causing her body to run low on energie. There had been cases of children who had fallen through the ice and had been recoverd alive nearly three hours later, still alive. But those children all suffered from different degrees of brain damage afterwards for the brain starts to die after a small amount of time without oxegin. But this girls brain waves were still normal as far as the tests could see. Though only time would be able to tell.

Mr. and Mrs. McAllister were worried sick but soon the docters diagnosed her as merily asleep and that she should wake up sooner or later. They suggested that she might recover from the shock better if it was in a warm, secluded area instead of a big, cold hospital. The couple had been looking at her throughout the glass window in the hallway and made their desiccion. She would come with them. There was no way that they would leave this child all by herself. They would care for her untill her parents come up for her. Suddenly they heard two police officers talking to each other.

'Nobody had reported a child missing with shoulder length pure white hair and a dragon shaped birth mark on her right arm.'

'Sad, to see a young one like her be forgotten.'

'Yeah but that's life for ya.'

The couple bristled and they were about to speak their mind to the police man when the girl in the room stirred. In an instand both the couple, the police man and two doctors were at her bedside. The child stirred again and slowly began to wake up. First her fingers twitched, secondly she moved her head around a little and finally she opened her eyes. The people in her room were met with big, silver freckled, midnight blue eyes. One of the docters gave the girl some water which she gratefully gulped down. After she finished her drink she looked around her room and spoke.

'Where am I? And… WHO am I?

* * *

**_Kya!! it seems little Hope has lost her memory, but then again who wouldn't after what happend. don't worry I wont let her turn into some sad little puppy, she'll recover soon enough (or will she... hmmm) anywayz read & review... I'd like to hear from you all what you think about Hope etc. stay tuned untill next time (which I hope wont take as long T.T)_**


	3. Chapter 3 answering questions

_Chapter 3: answering questions_, **whoops, forgot all about this little snippit of a chapter XD well, enjoy.  
The next chapter will be up two minutes after this :)**

* * *

It had been two hours since she had woken up and had said these words. Her memory had been coming  
back to her, she remembered who she was and where she was from though she couldn't say that to the  
doctors. The couple had been really nice to her, telling her that she could stay with them until her parents  
were found. The doctors had been relieved to find that the girl didn't have lasting amnesia and they wrote  
her temporary loss of memory to her concussion. They asked her all kinds of questions which she  
answered… if she could. Of course, she couldn't go blabbing all about her father and brothers so she did  
the next best thing she could think of. She lied.

'What's your name little girl?'

'Hamato Hope.'

'How old are you Hamato?'

'No, Hamato is my last name.'

'Okay, so how old are you Hope?'

'Almost seven' she lisped through her missing front teeth.

'Are you shedding your teeth? Or did you lose those some other way?'

'I'm shedding, I already have two grown up teeth' she told them proudly.

'Oh how wonderful, you are such a big girl' cooed Jade.

'Ma'am, it'd be better if ya left tha room.'

'But….'

'Come along dear, let the officers do their job.'

Mr. McAllister slung an arm around his wife and guided her out of the room.

'So… Hope, can you tell us where you're from?'

'New York.'

The officer smiled. 'I know honey, but where in New York?'

Hope shrugged, determined to keep her family a secret. If she had to play a normal, innocent,  
not-trained-in-jiujutsu-or-any-other-martial-arts, little girl to do so, then so be it. She widened her deep  
blue eyes in an innocent look she perfected a long time ago with Michelangelo and gave the officer a big,  
lovable, look-at-me-I'm-cute, smile… complete with missing front teeth. There came a squeal from behind  
the door and Mrs. McAllister was visible in front of the window.

'Ma'am you're interrupting our investigation.'

Mr. McAllister sighed and tore his wife away from the window. Yes, the girl was cute but she didn't need  
to be fawning over her.

One of the two officers walked out of the room to keep Mrs. McAllister from disturbing again. The officer  
returned his attention to Hope, smiling again at her shameless display of the famous 'cute little girl charm'  
that every girl seemed to posses.

'But Hope, do you remember where you live?'

'No… I don't'

'Do you know if your parents are listed?'

'Listed? Where?'

'Their phone number… do you know if we can find it anywhere?'

Hope shook her head.

'We don't have a phone… my head hurts.'

The officer nodded.

'Thank you Hope, I think you can go to sleep now but I don't know what the doctor has to say about it.  
Goodnight Hope, we'll try and find your parents.'

Hope didn't want to sleep for she did not trust these strangers. But she was more tired than she had thought  
and it wasn't before long that she fell into a deep sleep.

* * *

Hope had been missing for several hours now and the four young turtles knew that they had to go home  
eventually. They were afraid of their fathers reaction to what had happened. If he would ask them what had  
happened, and he would, they would have to tell him that they had defied his orders and went to the forbidden  
conjunction. 'Maybe Hope's already home' Mikey offered hopefully. His brothers agreed and decided to go check it  
out.

The moment they arrived home they noticed the absence of a certain white haired prankster and their father had  
been waiting for them.

'My sons, where have you been?' He noticed that his daughter was missing and he looked at his four sons.

'And where is your sister?'

The four children gulped and Raph offered a weak grin, deciding to lie.

'She was here when we left sensei….'

'Do not lie to me Raphael, where is your sister. Where is Hope?'

'Well… you see… Leo want's to tell you something!' said Donny.

Leo was being pushed forward by his brothers.

'Hey!'

Their father quirked his brow at his sons antics.

'Yes Leonardo?'

Leo looked up at him and suddenly started crying.

'I'm so so-ho-horry sensei! Weshouldn' she'sgoooooooooone….'

Leonardo wailed the last part of his sentence and Splinter strained to understand his sons flood of words.

'Are you saying that Hope is missing Leonardo?'

His sons furious nods caused Splinters heart to freeze in fear.

'What happened?'

'We went out to play and Hope fell in the water… we tried to find her but she was gone!'

To say that Splinter was mad was an understatement, his children hadn't been allowed to go out in the first  
place. However, punishment would have to wait because finding his daughter had a higher priority.

'Show me were she fell' he ordered and though he looked calm at the outside he was praying that his  
daughter was alive and well.


	4. Chapter 4 starting anew

_Losing Hope Chapter 4: Starting anew_** Well, here you go, the next chapter of losing Hope, sorry it took me so long.  
Well, enjoy.**

* * *

Hope was tired and grumpy. She wanted to sleep, but every time she fell prey to the sweet state of unconsciousness,  
someone woke her up. They said that they had to wake her every two hours to make sure there was no permanent  
damage. The little girl slurred out her answers to their insane questions and she vowed to bite the fingers of the next  
person who shook her awake….

* * *

Master Splinter had been searching in every connected tunnel for his missing daughter. He had left his distraught sons  
back at the lair for they would've slowed him down.  
He reached the sewer entrance where Hope had been washed ashore, eight hours too late. This was his last option,  
she couldn't have gone anywhere else. He had checked all the other options before coming here. The smell of the  
sewer was heavy in the air but Splinter's strong nose picked up a faint trace of a familiar scent. Hope's scent lingered  
on the western bank of the river where a second, foreign, scent mixed with hers. He followed the scent up the river  
bank where he reached a road.

The grass at the side of the road was flattened by multiple feet, tire-tracks could be seen in the dirt. Master Splinter  
lost her scent at this scene of chaos and he sat back and grieved for the loss of his child.

* * *

Hope woke up with the sun in her face. Mrs. McAllister had opened the curtains and she was smiling at the child.

'Good morning love, how do you feel?'

_Like someone bludgeoned me with a sledgehammer and then put my on the grill._ 'A little better, thank you.'

'Oh my, you are so polite.'

Hope graced the woman with a smile and was about to say something when the doctor walked in.

'Good morning sweetheart, I have some good news for you!'

Hope cringed, why was everyone so bright and chipper this morning?

'You can go home sweety, your head should be better with a few days rest and the rest of your injuries are only  
minor. The worst you had was the hypothermia but that's already resolved. You have been very lucky.'

'I can go home?'

Her face lit up in anticipation. The doctor nodded and turned to Mrs. McAllister.

'Make sure that she gets enough rest. Keep her in bed for the next couple of days and keep her warm. She might  
throw up at first due to her concussion but that should lessen after a few days. If this doesn't happen, come back.'

Mrs. McAllister lit up like a Christmas tree while Hope felt like her heart was being squashed. She looked up, ready  
to tell them that she couldn't go with them, and saw that Mrs. McAllister was genuinely happy. Hope sighed and  
she knew that she couldn't crush their feelings, not now… not like this.

Her thoughts went towards her family, her father and her brothers. They returned and froze on Mikey's face as she  
fell. She remembered how stricken they all looked Mikey's scream echoing in her head. Hope couldn't help it, she  
was a six-year-old child who was separated from her family, so she did what every lost child does… she cried. She  
cried and no one could calm her down. Mr McAllister flailed his arms in helpless panic. He desperately tried to calm  
down both the girl and his wife, who started crying because of Hope. Loud, heartbreaking sobs tore through the  
small body.

Her breathing was erratic and her heartbeat thundered in her ears.

Mr McAllister kneeled at her side and softly stroked her hair.

'Hush now little one, don't be sad. We'll find your parents, and if we don't you can have a home with us.'

Hope only began to cry harder as he spoke, she knew that they'd never be able to find her family. Mr McAllister then  
had an idea and he decided to try it.

'Sweetie, what's your favourite animal?'

'T-turtle' she answered hiccupping.

He nodded and stood. He caught the tear-filled eyes of his wife and he indicated that he'd be right back. A glance  
over his shoulder told him that Jade had gathered the crying child in her arms.

* * *

Four young turtles were left alone in the lair. They were scared, afraid of the news their father would bring. They  
were certain that he'd find her dead, drowned in sewer water.

Mikey sat crying on the couch. Donny held his brother in his arms, trying to give him comfort but finding that he  
couldn't. Tears ran silently down his beak as Mikey sobbed into his plastron. Bickering could be heard in the  
background.

'… your fault!'

'Is not! It's you….'

'If it weren't for….'

Leo and Raph were fighting with each other, neither knowing another way to deal with the situation.

* * *

Mr McAllister re-entered the room to find Hope still in his wife's arms. She had calmed down a little but not by much.  
He walked to the bed and he smiled at the picture his wife made with the child.

'Hope, I have something for you.'

She looked up and he presented her a fluffy turtle toy.

'This little guy will keep you company for as long as you'll stay with us, okay?'

Hope sniffed and she reached for the toy. Granted, it wasn't Yuuki, but it was soft and it's shape was familiar so  
she hugged it close to her body and she buried her wet face in it's shell.

'Thank you…' she said though her words were muffled by the toy.

The McAllisters smiled at her and Mr McAllister answered

'You are most welcome my dear.'

She looked up at the couple and she bowed her head in respect, like her father taught her.

'Thank you for saving me err….'

'McAllister,' the couple smiled, 'but you can call me Jade and this is my husband Jack.'

_Jack and Jade McAllister, right._

'Knock knock.'

A man poked his head around the corner of the door. He had a beard, unruly brown hair and warm brown eyes,  
the same eyes as Jack had.

'Jacky, Jay… is this the little squirt you picked up?'

'Drew, thank you for coming. Did you get what we asked?'

'Sure thing love, anything for my favourite sister-in-law. The car's downstairs and Missy gave me a dress that  
might fit the little lass.'

The man walked in, he was around 1.80m tall, the same height as Jack. It wasn't hard to see that they were  
brothers.

'Thanks Drew, how's Missy?'

'Peachy, she's having weird cravings all the time and she look like she swallowed a small balloon.'

Jade laughed.

'Ah, the joys of being pregnant. At least she got over her morning sickness.'

'That's true.'

Hope sat looking at the adults in her room, curiosity shining in her big blue eyes. Drew noticed her looking and  
he leaned over to her.

'Hey sweetheart, ain't you the prettiest little thing.'

She smiled and reached over to his beard, carefully petting it. Wonder shone in her eyes, _humans can get fur?_  
Of course she knew that she was human and she knew that Jade was the same as her. Jack too, though male,  
his face was completely bald.

'Hope, this is Drew, Jack's little brother. He's married to Missy and they are expecting a baby.

'Do they already have a kid?' she asked, gesturing towards the dress in Drew's hands.

He laughed, 'no princess, my Missy is a school teacher. She teaches 2nd grade and she always has some  
clothes ready just in case.'

Hope nodded. Jade ushered both men out of the room.

'You don't watch a lady change, shoo.'

The brothers laughed and left the room. Jade turned towards Hope and she helped the little girl in a baby-blue  
sundress. She ran a brush trough the shoulder length white hair. Hope grabbed the turtle toy as Jack came  
back in the room. He lifted her up in his arms and he carried her out of the hospital, Drew and Jade in tow. He  
buckled her in, in the backseat, Jade sitting next to her and Drew in the passenger seat.

Hope sat watching in wonder as the city sped past her window and she figured that it might not be the worst  
thing in the world to stay with these people, at least until her family found her.

* * *

Splinter returned to the lair to find his sons shouting and blaming each other for Hope's accident. His whiskers  
shook and his tale lashed in irritation, these were the only warnings before he suddenly snapped.

'ENOUGH! All four of you are to blame. You weren't allowed to be out in the first place…!'

'Master? Where's Hope, did you find her? Is she okay? Is she alive?'

He fell silent at Michealangelo's questions, he looked at the anxious faces of his sons.

'I found her scent, I do not know if she is alive or not for she was found and taken by someone. I will look in all  
the mortuaries and hospitals, if she's not there I will turn this City inside out until I find her no matter how long  
it will take me…'

* * *

**There you have it, hope you liked it (HOPE you liked it... get it? sorry) I'll try to update soon.**


	5. Chapter 5 first times for everything

**So sorry, it's been a while people. Well, here's chapter 5. I hope you'll enjoy.**

* * *

The car pulled up the driveway of a regular house in the suburbs. The neighbourhood was pretty quiet and gardens bordered the street. Hushed voices conversed as the sleeping child was lifted from her seat. A quick wave and a murmur of thanks was followed by an engine as the car backed out of the driveway and drove off. Jade opened the front door as her husband carried Hope inside. The little girl had fallen asleep 5 minutes after leaving the hospital. The couch was rearranged to accommodate the sleeping form and the couple silently thanked Drew for having such foresight. Jack and Jade went upstairs after settling Hope on the couch, they were dog-tired after an entire night and day in the hospital. It had yet to be 7 o'clock and they hadn't eaten but the couple was just exhausted. They let themselves fall on their bed, and the moment their heads hit the mattress, they had left the conscious world.

* * *

Big blue eyes opened at 6 o'clock in the morning, she had been woken up by the most annoying sound in the whole world. Hope realised that she wasn't at home and she wondered what this blasted sound could be. She crawled out of her make-shift bed and wandered over to the window. Reaching out, she withdrew the curtains. The sky was already becoming lighter but her eyes settled upon the most amazing sight ever. In the tree, in front of the house, sat a birds nest. Hope saw a mamma-bird, a papa-bird and three little chicks. Never in her young life had Hope been awoken by chirping birds, she had never seen the topside either, not counting her five waking minutes in the car. She stood gazing at the amazing world outside and she wondered if she would be allowed to go outside.

It took the couple another 3 hours before they came downstairs. Jade panicked at the sight of the empty couch but her husband lightly touched her elbow before gesturing at the window. There, in the light of the morning sun stood a mesmerised little girl. Jade smiled at the child and she walked up behind her, hugging Hope from behind.

'Good morning sweetheart, how do you feel?'

Hope started as arms suddenly looped around her but she soon relaxed as she realised who it was.

'I'm fine, thank you. I was just looking outside.'

'Hmm, why don't we go outside for a bit after breakfast?'

It didn't seem possible but Hope's eyes doubled in size at the prospect of walking topside.

'Really?'

'I don't see why not. Now, would you like pancakes for breakfast?'

She smiled at the girl's face, Hope had turned around towards her but she didn't get a chance to reply.

'Of course she wants pancakes Jade, what little girl doesn't'

'Well she might be lactose intolerant for all we know.'

Jack turned to Hope.

'Well? Are you lactose intolerant?'

'What's that?'

'Are you allergic to milk and cheese and stuff like that?'

'What's allergic?'

Jade smiled, 'it means that you get very sick if you come in touch with stuff your body can't stand.'

Hope still didn't understand but she decided that she'd give it a try, besides, every time master Splinter brought home cheese (which wasn't often) she felt fine after eating it so she figured it was okay. At Hope's barely noticeable nod, Jade stood up and went into the kitchen. For an hour the most delicious scents assaulted Hope's nose which made her stomach growl in hunger. Finally the call came.

'Breakfast is ready, come and get it!'

Hope made her way into the kitchen where she encountered a huge stack of flat objects, they looked a little like pizza bottoms to her. She climbed upon a kitchen chair and she saw Jack pouring syrup over her stack of pancakes. The girl reached for a fork and a knife and sliced off a small piece of one of her pancakes while ignoring the surprised looks of the couple. Jack and Jade watched in wonder as she displayed a surprising control over her fine motor skills, far surpassing other six-year-olds they knew. They watched as she cut off a piece of her pancake and bit it tentatively from her fork. Blue eyes widened comically and she began wolfing down her pancakes. The couple frowned, with the way she was acting you'd think that she hadn't had a decent meal in weeks (which was more true than they could imagine).

* * *

When breakfast was over, Hope jumped down from her chair and ran to the door. There, she waited patiently for Jack to unlock and open it. He pushed the door wide open and he stepped outside, taking a deep breath of air in the progress. Hope wavered at the door, unsure of what to do. Jade came up behind her and scoped her up in her arms, only to put her down in the middle of the backyard. Hope froze, enthralled by the feeling of grass under her bare feet. She wiggled her toes and threw her head back in her neck, gazing up at the sky, marvelling at it's debt. It promised to be a warm and sunny summer day. Suddenly a ball thumped her upside her head and Hope stared at the offending toy at her feet.

'Kick it, or throw it. Either way is fine but it isn't going to move by staring at it.'

She knew that! Hope picked the ball up and she threw it blindly at Jack making him catch it. That one throw signalled the beginning of several hours of out-door fun and Hope decided that topside wasn't so scary after all.

Hope had been gone for two weeks now, Master Splinter snuck into hospitals and morgues to check the register. Jane Doe's were visited in person yet none where his little girl. The prospect of scouting the City seemed daunting but he refused to give up his search. One way or the other, Hope would be returned to them even if it would cost him a year of his life!

Summer vacation was about to end and the McAllisters had decided that Hope should go to school. Jade rung up her sister-in-law to explain the situation and to ask if she had a spot for Hope. Missy agreed that the little girl could come to their school until her parents were found. Both sister-in-laws decided that Hope should come over to meet her future teacher beforehand, that's why Hope suddenly found herself in front of a Mahogany door flanked by plastic flamingos. Jack rung the bell and Drew opened the door for them.

'Jackie! Jay-jay! And of course little princess Hope! Come in, come in!'

The trio was ushered inside and a black haired woman came waddling from somewhere in the house.

'Jack, Jade! It's so nice to see you both again!'

'Missy! You shouldn't be up!' exclaimed Drew.

Missy wrinkled up her nose and winked at Jade, 'he's sweet but he's acting like I'll explode at any moment!'

Jade laughed and she moved to hug her sister-in-law.

'Hello Missy darling, how are you doing?'

Hope was watching the exchange with open mouth, her gaze fixated on the very pregnant form of Missy. She had never seen a pregnant woman before. _She must've eaten a lot for her belly to look like that._ Missy noticed Hope's gaze on her and she smiled down at the girl.

'Oh Jade, she looks adorable, I could just eat her up!'

Hope froze, _eat me up? I must've heard wrong…_

'Have you… have you… eaten… a lot?'

'What? No! No sweety, I have my baby boy or girl in my tummy.'

'A baby….' Hope trailed off gulping nervously while her eyes filled with fright.

'Come here darling, give me a hug.'

Missy awkwardly bended towards Hope and her hand closed over the girls arm.

Suddenly, several things happened at once.

'NO!'

Hope screamed and ripped herself loose. She froze for a few seconds before bolting out of the door.

'HOPE, WAIT, COME BACK!'

The little girl was running down the lane right on to the streets. A car honked, followed by the screeching of the breaks. She froze like a deer caught in the headlight as she saw the car rapidly approaching. The car came closer still and Hope closed her eyes, bracing herself for impact. She opened her eyes when nothing happened, seeing the car's front just inches from her face. Falling to her knees, she lamented _okay so maybe topside really is scary!_

* * *

_**Well, did you like it? Please tell me what you thought, which meanse review *puppy eyes* anyhow, next up is Hope's very first day at a normal school and Splinter might find a clue to her whereabouts.**_


	6. Chapter 6 introducing society

**Hi everyone, so I know that I'm a terribel author and that it has been ages that I last updated any of this. There's not really an excuse for neglecting my story. I promise that I didn't abandon Hope. In fact, after I finish up this story there will be at least two more series featuring her.**

**Now, to anwer an excelent question I recieved from a reader. She asked how the turtles and Hope appeared to be the same age though I said that they were 4 when she was found. I, however, can't find where I said such a thing. **_To clear up any confusion though... They are about the same age, Hope is half a year younger than the boys. The turtles seemed older and more developed when she was first found because I figured that their growth had sped up considerably after first contact with the mutagen before stagnating and stabalizing. Because their remarkable growth needed time to even out, Hope had time to catch up to her brother's growth and mental capabilities. They've been following the same growth pattern since Hope turned 1. I hope I have informed you adequatly now._ **Enjoy the story!**

* * *

**Chapter 6:  
**  
Two strong hands pulled the child off the street and against a heaving chest.

_'Hope! What in the world were you thinking!'_

She looked up and found that she was in the arms of Jack.  
His eyes were filled with anger but his body shook with residue fear and adrenaline.  
He turned and took her back inside the house, depositing her on the couch before he went back outside with Drew to try and placate the driver of the car.

Inside, Hope sat in-between Jade and Missy. The pregnant woman's presence kept Hope's own adrenaline level from going down, making the child quiver with repressed fear.  
Missy was bawling her eyes out and Jade was as pale as a sheet.  
Both women kept the girl between them in their sights until Missy calmed down and the men returned.  
Once everyone was seated four sets of eyes turned to Hope, making her squirm in discomfort.

_'Whatever possessed you to do such a thing? You could've gotten hurt, or worse,"_ started Jade.

_'I didn't want to be eaten,'_ was the meek answer, _'She already ate a baby, why wouldn't she eat me?'_

Accusing blue eyes turned to Missy, who looked surprised.

_'I ate a baby? Why would you think that?'_

_'Because there's a baby in your tummy, how did it get there if you didn't eat it?'_

The four adults suddenly seemed to choke on air and sputtered after her innocent question.

_'Oh sweetheart, I didn't eat my baby. I err, can't explain how it got there, you'll learn that when you're older._  
_ But rest assured, I didn't eat my baby.'_

_'And… and me?'_

_'No sweetie, you're adorable, but I wouldn't eat you either. I promise.'_

Hope still looked sceptical but she seemed to relax slightly.  
The child took in her surroundings while the adults turned their focus on each other instead of the girl and she saw that the house was tastefully decorated in light colours.

_'… what do you think Hope?'_

The question had been sudden and she realized that she didn't know what was asked.

_'Sorry?'_

_'School starts on Monday; we should take you to get a haircut and some new clothes now that you're fully recovered.'_

A haircut? She'd never had a haircut in all her life.  
Master Splinter hadn't dared to cut the snowy locks himself.  
This meant that Hope's hair reached well past her knees and was mostly kept tied in a rather messy ponytail.

The girl never got the chance to give her opinion as Jade dragged her outside and into the car.  
Missy wobbled after them and climbed in, all the while giving instructions for dinner to the men.  
Once they were all seated Jade started the car and drove off.

* * *

They stopped at the mall and got out of the car.  
The parking lot was in the basement and practically deserted.  
It wasn't until they entered the main hall that they saw other people.  
Jade and Missy were used to the beehive of activity, but Hope wasn't.  
She had spent her life in the sewers and even after she had ended up topside, she had been sheltered.  
The hospital room had been a private one and only doctors and police officers had been allowed inside before the McAllister's received clearance.  
She hadn't left the garden of the McAllister home after her discharge from the hospital and she had only travelled by car.  
Oh she had seen many people through the windows, but she had never walked among them like this.  
She felt overwhelmed and desperately held onto Jade's hand.

Missy led the way into a salon and Hope was taken to a chair in front of a mirror.  
Jade had put the long hair into a braid that morning, and now a woman she didn't know was undoing it.

_'It's such a pretty colour, but it's riddled with split ends so we'll have to cut off at least 10cm to get it all healthy again.'_

_'That's fine, this length is inconvenient so if you could cut it to her mid-back that would be fantastic,'_ answered Jade.

_'Mid-back it is then. Alright sweetie, sit still for me okay?'_

Hope felt intimidated by everything she'd seen today so far, so she had no trouble complying with the order and as the time passed the pile of snow on the floor kept growing.

Finally, after 45 minutes of minimal movement and a lot of fallen white hair, the hairdresser declared Hope done.  
Her hair had shortened considerably; it now fell to her mid-back and had been layered to give her hair more volume.  
White bangs had been cut to chin-length, framing her face perfectly.  
Hope stared into the mirror, not daring to believe that she was the girl reflected back at her.  
Jade smiled and Missy clapped her hands in appreciation.

_'You look wonderful darling. Now, let's get you some new clothes!'_

Missy was practically bouncing in anticipation… for as much as the pregnant woman was able to at least.  
Jade hastily paid for the haircut before Missy grabbed her and Hope to drag them along.  
The adults had a blast while shoving their charge into outfit after outfit, making the poor child's head spin with the amount of clothes she had to put on.  
She had lost her interest after the third set of clothes and she barely listened to the woman as they dragged her from shop to shop. Suddenly felt her tummy rumble in a familiar call for food.  
Blue eyes glanced up at the two women next to her and she decided to speak up.

_'I'm hungry'_ she said in a small voice.

The adults heard her quiet remark and they realized that it was already past lunch time.

_'Oh of course you're hungry sweetie!'_

_'Sorry we didn't realize that sooner.'_

_'N-no, it's okay…'_

But no amount of protesting on Hope's part would stop the women from feeling guilty.

Jade looked down at the girl and asked, _'what would you like to eat sweetheart?'_

Hope glanced around and she spotted a pizzeria.  
Her blue eyes filled with longing and she fought against the tears that were threatening to fall.  
What she wouldn't give to have her brothers here with her! Her adult companions misinterpreted the look in her eyes with the overwhelming love for a favourite food children could have.  
They smiled at each other before guiding their charge over to the pizzeria.  
The pizzas they chose turned out to be delicious and Hope started crying, wishing she could shove some slices into a bag to take home to her pizza-loving family.  
Jade gathered the little girl into her arms and carried her out of the pizzeria, leaving Missy to pay for the pizzas.

_'Shhhh, Hope it's alright… shhh.'_

But she didn't stop bawling for at least another five minutes, she felt homesick and she didn't know how long she could hold on until her dad found her.  
Eventually Jade managed to calm Hope down though the girl kept softly hiccupping.

'_I'm –hic- sorry.'_

_'It's okay Hope. You know what, we're just going to find you a jacket to wear with your skirt and then we'll get some ice-cream, okay?'_

Hope had never tasted ice-cream before but she decided to just nod meekly.  
Her guardians put her back on her feet and they all just wandered around.  
When they passed a jewellery-shop, Hope glanced into the window and gasped.  
There, on a white satin display pillow laid a gorgeous silver necklace with a sodalite charm.  
What made the necklace special was because the stone was cut into the shape of a sea-turtle.  
Not the same as her brothers but to her, a turtle was a turtle and reminded her of them.  
The women noticed that Hope stopped walking and doubled back to see what she was looking at.  
Jade and Missy glanced at each other, the necklace was a little on the expensive side but the girl seemed positively entranced with it. Jade signed Missy to go on without her and to take Hope; she'd catch up with them at the ice-cream parlour.  
Later Jade was sitting with Missy, eating hazelnut ice-cream and congratulating each other with a successful shopping spree and watching Hope get absorbed in her ice-cream cone.

* * *

Days passed in a rush for little Hope.  
Before she knew it, she woke up on the last day of summer vacation.  
Jack and Jade took her out after breakfast but she didn't know where they were going. After a five minute walk they arrived at a playground.  
Now, Hope knew what a playground was because master Splinter had taken her and her brothers to playgrounds before.  
But that was only when the playgrounds were dark and deserted.  
So Hope wasn't prepared for the noise and the sheer amount of children running around.  
She ducked behind Jack with a frightened squeak before peeking out from behind his legs.  
The couple laughed at her antics.

_'Go on Hope, we'll be right here. Go and have some fun.'_

She slid out from behind his leg and cautiously moved towards the jungle gym.  
There were a few girls hanging upside down on the tumbling bar and a group of older boys were kicking a soccer ball around.  
Hope debated on what to do, but she decided to abandon the jungle gym and join the group of boys.

_'Hi, can I play with you?'_

_'Eeew, of course not! You're a girl!'_

_'So?'_

_'Everybody knows that girls can't play soccer!' _

_'They cry when they're hurt and they're afraid of getting dirty.'_

She stared at him, girls were afraid of getting dirty?  
Maybe girls that didn't grown up in the sewers did.  
But she couldn't let his remarks slide so without warning she shot forward and took the ball from him.  
He cried in outrage and went to take back his ball from the little girl.  
Hope, however, had no intention of giving it back just like that.  
She expertly manoeuvred the ball between the boys while avoiding their attempts to stop her.  
She ran, and ran before kicking the ball in the net and scoring.  
Hope turned around with triumph written all over her face.  
The boys looked stumped for a second… and then started cheering.  
Just like that, she was accepted into their fold and she played with them for the rest of the day.

Hope was exhausted when her guardians called her to go home.  
Jack noticed this and he lifted the little girl onto his neck.  
She fell asleep with her head on top of his head and he smiled at his wife.  
They had been debating on adopting Hope if her family didn't turn up soon.  
Rather than let her get lost in the system, they knew that they had a lot of love to give the girl.  
Both of them felt content and happy to have Hope in their lives.  
She certainly lived up to her name.

They arrived home and Jack went to put his precious cargo to bed.  
He and his brother had cleaned out the guest room two days after Hope arrived home with them and it had been her room ever since. Jade went ahead and she took out the clothes Hope would be wearing to school tomorrow and laid them out for the sleeping girl. Silently, Jade removed a small jewellery box out of her pocket and she put it on top of the pile of clothes.  
The couple each pressed a goodnight kiss to Hope's forehead before sneaking out of the bedroom and going downstairs.  
Leaving the door cracked open to let in light from the hallway.

The slumbering girl in the bed dreamt of her family.  
She dreamt of laughing with Mikey, sparring with Leo or Raph and watching Donny tinker with stuff.  
A silent tear filled with longing escaped from between closed lids as soft-furred dream arms took her home.

* * *

Master Splinter landed on a building next to a hospital.  
He had been here before without any luck and he didn't really know why he had returned.  
Something seemed to pull him here tonight though he was slowly losing faith that he'd be able to find his daughter.  
Every turn he made seemed to be a dead-end.  
He had trouble dividing his attention between searching the city and spending time with his sons.  
His heart ached every night he had to return back home empty handed.  
The rat knew that his sons blamed themselves and each other for the loss of their sister and the tension was high in the small lair.

He was about ready give up and call it a night when a conversation managed to find itself to his sensitive ears.

_'… girl.'_

_'Yeah, and so young. I still wonder where she came from.'_

_'No word from her parents?'_

_'None at all.'_

Splinter leaned over the edge of the building and he spotted two nurses smoking on a balcony.  
The conversation grew fainter when the wind picked up and he silently made his way to a balcony below the two nurses.

_'… have that hair!'_

_'Hmmhmm, I've never seen hair that white before, and those dark blue eyes…'_

_'Maybe her mom's a supermodel?'_

The nurses laughed at that before putting out their cigarettes and going back inside.  
Splinter sat frozen on his balcony below.  
He couldn't believe his ears.  
Hope!  
His little Hope had been here… maybe.  
It was a long shot but it was the only lead he's had ever since he found the tire-tracks carrying off her scent.  
Still, the odds that it was Hope that they were talking about were high enough for Splinter to decide to check out the hospital once more.  
And this time he wouldn't leave a stone unturned. He would find his daughter!

* * *

**There you have it, Hope's first real outings topside where she gets to mingle with other people :P Next chapter will show her first day at school. So please stay tuned. I'll start on it next week because I have to finish some papers and tests for school first this week. Please leave a review... even if it is just to bite my head off for my long absence ^.^' ~Ciao**


End file.
